Head of Finance

Overview

The Ascot Group is a small entrepreneur led, owner-managed group of companies covering technology, marketing and property. It started from a dining room table 20 years ago, and now employs 80 staff with major growth ambitions.

The Head of Finance will take hands-on responsibility for day-to-day financial operations while also providing insight and strategic financial support to the CEO.

You will lead a small finance team, run the month-end process, manage cashflow, oversee compliance, and ensure strong financial discipline — while also stepping up to support long-term planning, banking relationships, investment discussions, and group-wide decision-making.

The role requires someone equally comfortable producing the numbers and explaining what they mean.

Key Responsibilities

Hands-On Financial Management (Primary Focus)

• Lead the daily financial operations across all trading and property entities.
• Produce accurate monthly management accounts, KPIs, balance sheets, and meaningful analysis.
• Oversee sales ledger, purchase ledger, reconciliations, payment runs, and internal controls.
• Run the rolling 13-week cashflow and manage short-term cash decisions.
• Take ownership of VAT, PAYE/NIC, year-end processes, and statutory compliance.
• Maintain and improve purchase order systems, approval workflows and internal checks.
• Ensure accurate, timely payroll through oversight of HR/payroll administration.
• Oversee administration and compliance functions

Financial Leadership & Business Partnering

• Provide insight, commentary, and analysis to support the Directors.
• Lead budgeting, forecasting, long-term planning, and scenario modelling.
• Support commercial decisions, pricing strategies, investment cases, and performance reviews.
• Contribute to board-level reporting and financial presentations.

Banking, Treasury & Investor Support

• Manage banking relationships, funding facilities, and refinancing.
• Support meetings with lenders, brokers, advisors, and potential investors.
• Prepare financial packs, forecasts, and models for external stakeholders.

Property Finance and Management

• Manage property company finances including mortgages, repayments, refinancing, and broker engagement.
• Support development or refurbishment projects with cashflow monitoring and cost control.
• Ensure accuracy of rent schedules, service charges, and property-related financial processes.
• Oversee compliance and legal matters, working with agents, solicitors and brokers

Systems, Controls & Continuous Improvement

• Strengthen financial systems, processes, and internal controls across all companies.
• Improve reporting capability, automation, and data accuracy.
• Support future upgrades to financial or operational systems.
• Take a leadership role in the management and improvement of our CRM platform for workflow management and customer relations, including analysis/reporting

Corporate Services Leadership

• Ensure payroll accuracy and support managers with HR-related documentation.
• Work closely with leadership to maintain strong organisational discipline, performance metrics and compliance
• Liaise with third-party partners in the UK and overseas

Team Management

• Lead, support, and develop the finance team, ensuring clarity, accuracy, and accountability.
• Provide coaching and structure to build capability across the function.

Qualifications & Experience

• You will be a CIMA qualified accountant or have the equivalent proven experience
• Strong SME or multi-company background; comfortable working at both detail and strategic levels.
• Experience with property finance, service-led sectors or tech/SaaS beneficial.
• Strong modelling, forecasting, analytical, and reporting capability.
• Comfortable managing banks, lenders, brokers, and external advisors.
• Proven leadership in a fast-paced, entrepreneurial environment.
• Quickbooks and Xero experience

Personal Attributes

• Hands-on, detail-focused, and operationally strong.
• Commercial thinker who can translate numbers into meaningful insight.
• A steady pair of hands, not easily ruffled in a fast-paced environment.
• Pragmatic, proactive, resilient, and able to challenge constructively.
• Solution oriented – you know there are usually several solutions to any circumstances.
• Comfortable switching between operational detail and strategic support.
• A good communicator, able to present and inspire team members.
• Strong energy with desire to learn and improve.
• A team player, keen to participate and support others

The package

• Salary circa £50k PA depending on experience
• 23 days holiday rising to 28, plus bank holidays
• Full office-based, at our HQ in Worle, near Weston-super-Mare with on-site car park and adjacent to mainline train station
• 39 hours per week - office hours are 8:30pm to 5pm (4pm Fridays)
• Participation in a new Employment bonus/share scheme

Job Types: Full-time, Permanent

Pay: £50,000.00 per year

Application question(s):

• Do you live within 30 minutes of Worle, Weston-super-Mare?
• Are you CIMA qualified with a minimum of 3 years commercial experience?

Work Location: In person